Lakeland College is rolling out a new option for their Child and Youth Care program starting this Fall.
The Child and Youth Care Diploma program dates back to 2001 and it will see a French language option that will be in-person as well as online.
Janice Aughey, Dean of Health Wellness and Human Services says the program allows training for students dealing with at risk children and their families. The new option comes courtesy of fresh accreditation.
“We recently this year received national accreditation from the Child and Youth Care Education Accreditation Board of Canada, which we are extremely proud of. I guess this is the next step in Child and Youth Care programming at Lakeland College, being able to offer it to Franco-Albertans.”
Aughey says the program also delves into therapeutic relationships and communication to assist those children. She adds that the College has been offering French programming since 2014 in Early Learning and Child Care and Educational Assistance. She notes they have been partnering with several Francophone school districts and daycares and this is an important development that those school districts have been looking for.
“If you’re a student whose first language is French and you don’t have the opportunity to learn that skill set in your first language, I think there would be some gaps. So Lakeland being able to provide Franco-Albertans the opportunity to study in their first language is critical.”
Aughey explains that outside of Quebec, this Lakeland College option is the only one available across Western Canada.
Applications for the online options are always open, however for the Fall intake, students are encouraged to apply before August 1st.
More information can be found at the College’s website.